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'Banaras' interprets existentialism: Urmila Matondkar
Indo-Asian News Service

New Delhi, April 2 (IANS) Actress Urmila Matondkar says her upcoming film "Banaras - A Mystic Love Story" interprets the concept of existentialism with the help of a love story. 

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"It kind of connects quantum physics to what the Vedas say," Urmila said. "I wanted to do something different from my other films like 'Rangeela'. I have worked hard for this film.

"I went through all the books on Banaras and visited places in the city and mingled with people living there to understand their lifestyle," she told a news conference here Saturday, referring to the temple city of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.

Talking about her role, Urmila said: "It is the story of a physics scholar Shwetambri played by me - she is bright and beautiful and the only child of rich aristocratic Brahmin parents (Dimple Kapadia and Raj Babbar) and studies at the local university. 

"Soham (Ashmit Patel) is a music lover and she falls in love with him. How their relationship shatters the peace of the city is what the film is all about." 

As for her co-star Ashmit, who is relatively new in the industry, Urmila said: "It was a great experience for me to work with Ashmit, he is a great actor."

Director Pankaj Parashar, best known for his films "Jalwa" and "Chalbaaz", said: "I am venturing into this genre of filmmaking for the first time and it has been a great experience. Banaras is a beautiful city with profound truth and it is our mission to bring it in front of the world."

Producer L.C. Singh, who also wrote the film's script, said: "I grew up in Banaras and studied at the Banaras Hindu University. The story is written by me and the film is an attempt to introduce young Indian audience to the wonders of Banaras. 

"I firmly believe in remaining rooted to my heritage and wanted a medium to communicate this to the younger generation. 

"The young generation do not know the city has been the centre of Indian spirituality for more than 600 years. Every Indian spiritual leader from the Buddha to Guru Nanak and Kabir Das to Adi Shankaracharya and J. Krishnamurthy lived there. The only way we can make them realise what India is, is by showing them their heritage. The film is an attempt to do that."

Sharing her experiences on the sets, Urmila said: "My most memorable moment was shooting for the Holi song in the film. Raj (Babbar)-ji was deliberately putting colours on me and I didn't stop him. Later Ashmit and me put colours on Rajji till his fake moustache fell off, and we all kept searching for it."

"Banaras" was shot in Varanasi and completed in a span of 45 days, followed by two days of shooting in Mauritius. It tries to capture the flavour of the holy city without the didacticism of a documentary film.

The film is schedule to hit theatres April 7.

'Banaras' - a mystical love story
Indo-Asian News Service

New Delhi, April 3 (IANS) The caste system that still thrives in Indian society and influences all relations is the focus of Pankaj Parashar's forthcoming film "Banaras", scheduled for release this month.

The film explores the complex relationship of humans with god while using Banaras - or Varanasi as the temple city in Uttar Pradesh is now called - and its spiritual wisdom as the backdrop.

Urmila Matondkar, who has been hibernating for a while, plays the central character in the film full of communal and spiritual twists and turns.

Shwetambari (Urmila), the bright young daughter of rich Brahmin parents (Dimple Kapadia and Raj Babbar), studies science at the Banaras university.

Soham (Ashmit Patel), a low caste mystic and a protégé of Babaji (Naseeruddin Shah), teaches music at the same university. When the two meet and fall in love, hell breaks loose in Banaras.

Orthodox and conservatives beliefs surface to the fore, threatening to take away everything from the young lovers.

When Shwetambari's powerful parents try to ignore the social strictures for the happiness of their daughter, dark forces and destiny take complete control over the situation.

A shattered and helpless Shwetambari decides to abandon the city she loves and to turn inwards for answers.

Seventeen years later, Shwetambari, who now teaches philosophy and religion, is confronted with a final choice - whether to return to Banaras to meet her dying father or to continue to deny all attachments with her hometown.

Will she decide to go back to Banaras? And if she does, will the sleeping demons and dark secrets lying underneath like a dormant volcano erupt again and destroy her peace of mind forever?

Versatile Naseeruddin Shah, who tickled the funny bones in the role of a ghost in "Chamatkar", plays a mystical character who apparently has answers to all the problems.

Parashar's creativity takes a new turn with "Banaras" - he ventures into a completely new zone with the mystical drama. So far, he had only churned out typical Bollywood potboilers but in this film he dabbles with some serious social issues affecting society.

His earlier releases were "Chaalbaaz", "Himalayaputra" and "Tumko Na Bhool Payenge".

Critics feel after "Pinjar", "Ek Haseena Thi" and "Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin", this film could be another feather in Urmila's cap as she has made a conscious decision of moving on to meaningful cinema after playing the glamour girl for more than a decade in mainstream films.
      

'Banaras' has humbled me: Urmila (INTERVIEW)
By Subhash K. Jha, Indo-Asian News Service

Mumbai, April 7 (IANS) Urmila Matondkar says her new film "Banaras" has made her recognise elements in life that are not discernible to the eye as much as they have made her grow as an actress.

"I play this physics student whose father is a high-profile priest. When I read the script I was stuck by the strength of my character. But I got a full measure of my part only when I went to Varanasi and saw what the city signified," Urmila told IANS in an interview about her character Shwetambari. 

Urmila, recovering at home from a viral infection, describes "Banaras" as a "simple straightforward love story. And since the setting is Varanasi there's an element of mysticism about the whole experience. 

"It's very important to continue growing as a person. An actor could have the best bank balance in the world, but she shouldn't wake up one day to realise she hasn't got anywhere in life. 'Banaras' has humbled me. It has made me recognise elements in life that are not discernible to the eye. 

"Even the language isn't about saying the words correctly. I think my command over the Hindi language is fairly good. But I had to go beyond an expression of words. My struggle was to get people interested in my character and the film within 10 minutes, or not at all."

For Urmila, going to Varanasi itself was a life-changing experience. 

"And I'm not just talking about the experience of standing in a city which is extraordinarily rich in religion, culture and spirituality. I'm also talking about being in the midst of people who are hardcore Hindi-film fans, not the kind who watch DVDs but queue up in movie theatres on Fridays. 

"After a while the sheer spirituality of Varanasi begins to sink into you. The city has people from all over the country...and when you visit you know why they like to come to this city. The place is a marvel of architecture and aestheticism. And we got to shoot in places where no film has been shot like the Kabir Samadhi, Sarnath...While shooting in Varanasi I was completely oblivious to the rest of the world."

"It's a role that I couldn't approach from the outside. I had to enter my character's spiritual world and then embrace her soul. I had to take my character to unimaginable heights of self-discovery. It was tough. And though I had read my part carefully, when I started shooting I suddenly realised I knew nothing about my character...Luckily my introduction scene in Mauritius which puts the plot into a perspective was shot at the end. By then I had a firm grasp over my character."

Urmila knows the film's spirituality can be dismissed as fake. 

"We shall see about that soon. Speaking for myself, I haven't felt a single false note in 'Banaras'. Dialogue writer Javed Siddiqui had gone to the city for a week to get a feel of the ambience. He stayed on for a month. The people making it weren't faking it. In fact I'd say it takes tremendous courage to make a film that doesn't sell India's poverty to the world or go overboard with a fantasy treatment of Indian values. 

"'Banaras' treats our religion and culture the way they are meant to be. But if people want to see it as a musical love story, they're most welcome. My co-star Ashmit Patel plays a music teacher."

She's gung-ho about the vast cast. "It was like revisiting my childhood. Naseeruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi (who's a dear friend) who played my parents in 'Masoom' are in 'Banaras'. So is Raj Babbbar who played my father in yet another childhood film 'Kalyug'. He plays my father again. 

"Dimple Kapadia and I had become close friends during 'Hum Tumpe Marte Hain'. We got a chance to spend time together. She's a wonderful human being. Unfortunately Naseer-ji and I don't have too many scenes together. But the presence of an actor like him reminds me that I didn't know anything when I worked with him years ago as a child. I still don't know much."

She's all praise for her director, Pankaj Parasher. 

"I had seen his earlier films like 'Chalbaaz' and 'Jalwa'. When I met him I got to know he had done some documentaries on spiritual subjects. So he was already familiar with the theme. Pankaj-ji gave me a book called 'An Autobiography Of A Yogi' to read. At first I thought, 'Oh God!' But then I began reading...And suddenly the journey of the yogi became my journey. Pankaj-ji's sleek style of storytelling gave the spiritual theme a fresh approach."

So is "Banaras" her best performance to date? 

"I'm very satisfied with what I've done. But unfortunately in this country, good acting is synonymous with makeup-less looks and melodramatic emoting. In 'Banaras', I've taken subtle acting to another level. I wasn't acting my character. I didn't want to look like a fake god person. I was very nervous. I had to walk on really thin ice. I was nervous. But I think I finally managed to get it right."